Damen yard awarded Rederij Groen contract at Europort
During a special contract signing ceremony at Europort 2013 yesterday, Maaskant Shipyards Stellendam, part of Damen Shipyards Group signed the contract to build an additional Seismic Research Support Vessel for Rederij Groen, the company said in its press release.
This latest contract follows last month’s order of two new Seismic Research Support Vessels (SRSVs) that are due for delivery in the third quarter of 2014. This third vessel, initially only an option, completes the latest phase of Rederij Groen’s expansion and will be delivered in 2015. The new SRSV will be identical to the first two; 35 x 8.70 metres and propelled by two Azimuth thrusters, each powered by a 500 kW electric motor. Three Caterpillar gensets will provide electrical power.
Rederij Groen, whose fleet will now number 27 vessels, is planning to put the vessels to work in the seismic industry worldwide. The fleet includes SRSVs, guard boats and chasers such as the ‘Aquarius-G’ and the ‘Astra-G’ also built at Maaskant Shipyards. The new SRSV’s will often operate alongside other vessels, assisting with board-to-board transhipment of goods and equipment. Their design provides stability and manoeuvrability, crucial to this sector.
Speaking about his long relationship with Maaskant Shipyards, Rederij Groen owner Henk Groen is pleased with the long relationship between shipyard and shipowner, “We have worked with Maaskant Shipyards for 10 years now, we have built up a lot of trust. I know with certainty that they deliver quality.”
Damen’s newbuild and repair yard in Stellendam has built all Rederij Groen’s SRSVs. After signing the latest contract yesterday, Maaskant Shipyards director Fritz van Dongen was rightly proud, “Clients keep coming back to us for our craftsmanship. We have a good infrastructure in place to cope with any challenge.” The yard also performs maintenance and repair for their entire fleet.